Doug Mercer, John Corrado and
Sceadeau D'Tela taking in the crops during a very wet summer
weekend.

Eastward Ho

94 different farmers tilled the Lancaster soil in three heats,
16 of whom advanced to the semi-finals. This was a far cry from
2011 when 25 players were allowed to advance with only 20 actually
doing so. This year, 15 of our 16 qualifiers posted, so only
one alternate was needed. Running 4-player games made the event
much more competitive, as 12 of the top 16 had two wins, and
only alternates with a win and a second were able to attempt
the second round.

Using all three decks in the advanced rounds made for a very
competitive playoff. The defending WBC and Euro Quest champs
were both eliminated in the semi-finals. Two 2011 laurelists,
perennial bridesmaid Mike Kaltman and Daniel Eppolito, advanced
to the Final and were joined by Chris Senhouse and Eric Ho. The
Final appeared to be an even contest until Dan broke away with
a well-rounded farm and points to match. In the end, however,
newcomer Eric emerged on top with a clinching 12 bonus victory
points drawing him three points ahead of Daniel for his first
WBC title. The final tally was Eric 48, Daniel 45, Mike 36, and
Chris 31. Mike had to be content with his new standing atop the
Agricola laurel list despite never having won the event.

Sign-ins went much smoother this year as a laptop facilitated
the paper work. Part of the credit is due to Sceadeau D'Tela,
whose invaluable knowledge of the game and all the correct card
interpretations from the compendium made him a great assistant
GM.